This invention disclosure relates to a new method for the direct production of thermal antineutrons and thermal antiprotons from thermal neutrons. The process of neutron-antineutron oscillation produces the antineutrons. The neutron-antineutron oscillation process produces thermal antiprotons when the antineutrons decay.
The process of neutron-antineutron oscillation is a prediction of grand unification models in gauge field theories. Ignatovich1 and Golub2 discuss the theory behind this prediction. Stated plainly, the theory predicts that a neutron that is cold enough to be contained by the interior walls of a suitable vessel may oscillate into an antineutron without violating any quantum conservation laws. Ignatovich1 also predicts that the probability of an oscillation is proportional to the number of reflections of the cold neutron from the walls of the vessel. No current art demonstrates the ability to cause neutron-antineutron oscillation to occur. The applicants demonstrate that the art in this disclosure represents the first reduction of neutron-antineutron oscillation theory into practice.
Published Application 2002/0037066 discloses that fullerene molecules, such as C70, trap free neutrons inside the internal cavity of the fullerene molecule. The present disclosure is based on the discovery that neutrons trapped inside fullerene molecules undergo neutron-antineutron oscillation. In the previous disclosure, the applicants referenced neutron-antineutron oscillation only as a theoretical possibility.
The applicants have found that the number of neutron reflections per second per trapped neutron, as produced by this art, is similar to the number of reflections that Ignatovich1 predicts will produce a neutron-antineutron oscillation. Once a trapped neutron oscillates into an antineutron, the same number of reflections presumably returns the antineutron to the neutron state.
In other words, once the interior cavities of C70 fullerene molecules trap a population of neutrons, approximately 50% of the population actually exists in the antineutron state at any subsequent time.
The internal cavities of the fullerene molecules contain the neutrons and antineutrons until the neutrons and antineutrons decay or until the application of other current art forces their release. U.S. Published Application 2002/0037066 discusses this current art. If the application of current art does not first release them, the neutrons trapped in the fullerene molecules decay by the process of beta decay. The resultant beta decay radiation has a characteristic half-life of 10.25 minutes as the previous patent disclosure demonstrates.
The trapped antineutrons decay by positron decay. Positrons are electrons with a positive electrical charge. In other words, positrons are antielectrons. Positrons are distinguishable from beta particles because they will annihilate with electrons. The result is a distinctive gamma energy emission at 511 KeV. A gamma spectrometer readily detects and identifies this gamma emission.
The applicants' research demonstrates that these annihilation energy emissions exhibit a 10.25-minute decay half-life. This is the same half-life as the trapped neutrons demonstrated in the previous disclosure. The accepted half-life of a free neutron is 10.25 minutes. Antineutrons, presumably, also have a 10.25-minute half-life.
The applicants also conducted an additional and independent series of experiments to confirm the results claimed in Published Application 2002/0037066 and in this application. Briefly, these experiments demonstrate directly the presence of antiproton emissions from C70 after the C70 is irradiated by thermal neutrons. These experiments are described in detail herein in the section headed “Independent Experimental Confirmation”.